THE  MISSION  OF  BEAUTY 

A    POEM 
BY    CARLETOX    SPRAGUE 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


THE  MISSION  OF  BEAUTY 


A   POEM 


BY  CARLETON    SPRAGUE 


1905 

TH*    MATTHEWS-NORTHRUP    WORKS 
BUFFALO,    N.  Y. 


SECOND    EDITION 


Copyright,  1905, 
BY  CARLETON  SPRAGUK 


if  off- 


I 
BEAUTY 

II 
NATURE 

III 
LIFE 

IV 

MIND 

v 
ART 

VI 

IMMORTALITY 


BEAUTY 

O,  subtle  touch  divine, 

Caress  of  God, 
His  hand  laid  lightly 

On  the  wakening  world, 
His  word  soft  spoken 

Unto  awed  mankind : 
Beauty, 

Thou  tender  mantle  Nature  weaves 
For  all  her  tenderer  moods, 

Protecting  mantle  Nature  wears 
In  all  her  sterner  ways: 

Thou  revelation  clear, 
God's  pledge  to  earth 

That  life  is  not  in  vain, — 
Along  thy  healing  paths 

Direct  our  steps, 
Open  our  weary  eyes 

That  we  may  clearly  see, 
Speak!  and  thy  language 

Make  us  understand, 
Enter  our  hearts 

And  therein  kindly  dwell. 


II 

NATURE 

In  lavish  splendor  through  His  worlds, 

In  infinite  variety, 
Redeeming  beauty  reigns 

And  naught  in  Nature  lacks. 

In  grains  of  dust  invisible; 

In  stern  heights  piling  heavenward ; 
In  pencil  touch  on  throat  and  wing; 

In  sweeping  strokes  of  sunset  hues ; 
In  blue  arched  dome  of  summer  noon ; 

In  deep  blue  dome  of  summer  night, 
Whose  silent,  age  defying  stars 

Deny  our  mute,  unspoken  cry 
For  light,  more  light, 

Ere  we  too  die! 
And  on  and  on 

The  great,  still  harmony  rolls, 
And  the  morning  breaks, 

And  the  big,  hot  sun 
Restores,  renews,  and  answers  — 

Life,  more   Life  I 


In  secret  petals 

Mountain  grown  in  chasms  inaccessible; 
In  gardens  where  the  single  rose 

With  sheen  of  circling  dove  competes ; 
In  forests  deep,  dark,  murmuring 

With  whisperings  of  the  night; 
In  lacework  of  wide  spreading  trees, 

Pale  moonlight  filtering  through 
And  sparkling  on  sad  Evening's  tears 

The  gently  fallen  dew; 
In  bending,  sighing,  storm  rocked  pines, 

That  catch  the  music  of  the  winds, 
And  rearing  high  their  crested  tops 

Sing  in  earth's  symphony  of  sound ; 
In  myriad  moss  and  lichen  forms 

That  carpet  earth's  untrodden  ways, 
Where  dwells  a  marvellous  insect  world, 

Unknown,  unseen,  that  wondrous  life, 
That  counterpart  of  fairyland; 

In  every  growing,  life  stirred  thing; 
In  every  beat  of  every  wing; 


[  '3  ] 

In  poise  of  startled,  listening  deer; 

In  glistening  rush  of  gleaming  fish 
That  thread  the  many  mooded  sea, — 

Now  sunlit,  trackless,  blue  and  mild, 
Now  surging,  dark,  relentless,  wild, — 

Eternal  mother  in  whose  heart 
All  waters  find  their  final  goal; 

In  cool,  secluded  mountain  lakes, 
Where  live  again  in  azure  hues 

The  grassy  shores  and  rocks  and  hills, 
And  high  set  peaks  of  mountain  land; 

In  hurrying,  sparkling,  forest  streams 
That  add  their  constant  tribute 

To  the  deep,  wide  river, — 
Flowing  now,  in  placid  stream, 

By  well  tilled  shores, 
Now  torn  in  steep,  and  rock  strewn  bed, 

With  flashing,  broken  spray  tossed  high, — 
Now,  seeming  poised, — 

As  suddenly, 
With  swift,  relentless,  sweeping  rush, 

It  falls  with  palpitating  roar, 
Far  down  the  sheer  cut  precipice, 

And  carves  its  course  through  canyons  deep 
Down  to  the  mighty  inland  lakes, 

Down  to  the  ocean's  outstretched  arms, 
To  lose  itself,  at  last,  far  off, 

In  the  engulfing  sea ; 


[  H] 

In  fertile  valleys  forest  bound, 

Where  gleams  the  green  of  succulent  spring; 
In  fertile  prairies  golden  toned, 

Their  wide  spread  acres  lost  to  view 
In  shimmering  growth  of  harvest  suns, — 

Those  fertile  lands,  where,  year  by  year, 
Is  writ,  as  on  a  fading  scroll, 

In  track  of  furrow,  tramp  of  feet, 
The  story  of  man's  husbandry; 

The  crop  is  garnered,  cold  and  frost 
Erase  the  story  of  the  toil, — 

The  spirit  of  the  conqueror 
Survives  the  generations  through  ! 


[  '5  ] 

O,  endless  wealth  of  loveliness 

So  lavished  on  our  blinded  view, 
Our  halting  words  inadequate 

Fail  utterly  to  speak  thy  due; 
We  live  our  little  span,  constrained 

By  limits  set  beyond  our  will, 
We  fail,  and  fall,  and  fear,  and  hope 

With  inward  view,  nor  see  until 
We  raise  our  gaze,  then  meets  the  eye 

The  bow  that  God  has  set  on  high. 


Ill 

LIFE 

The  miracle  the  first  man  saw 

In  endless  repetition  we  too  see, 
But  appreciation  due 

In  long  familiarity  is  lost; 
Wise  Nature's  law,  affinity, 

Love,  union,  birth, 
The  seed,  the  soil,  the  sun, 

The  gentle  rain  from  heaven, 
The  miracle  and  mystery  of  kindled  life! 

These  wonders  on  a  sudden 
Burst  upon  our  view, 

And  all  life's  beauty  thrills  us  through 
With  throbs  of  happiness  and  awe, 

Uplifts  the  sympathetic  mood 
And  bears  the  soul  on  outstretched  wings 

Aloft  to  regions  high  of  larger  view, 
Aloft  to  regions  vast  of  understanding  mind. 


i8 


Our  vision  clears,  the  Spirit  hovers  near; 

We  see  it  rest  upon  true  lovers'  vows  ; 
Upon  pure  love 

We  see  it  press  its  precious  kiss 
To  consecrate  a  new  life's  dawn; 

It  glorifies  the  mother's  eyes 
That  confident  the  future  view, 

Wherein  she  sees  that  nestling  form 
With  virtue,  goodness,  wisdom  clad, 

A  fearless,  conquering,  well  girt  knight, 
Redressing  wrong,  upholding  right, 

The  victor 
Crowned  at  honor's  goal. 

Rejoice!  O,  winners  in  the  race, 
And  every  laurel  leaf  rejoice  I 

And  every  vein  of  every  leaf, 
And  every  vein  of  every  stem, 

The  Spirit  folds  you  in  her  wings! 
Those  wings  that  touch  the  maiden's  face 

And  softly  wave  her  sunlit  hair, 
And  gently  sweep  her  graceful  form 

So  subtly  moulded,  hand  of  man, 
With  brush  and  chisel,  vainly  strives 

To  cast  in  more  enduring  mould. 
Fair  attitude  and  vision  fair, 

Thy  fortune  is  the  future's  bond; 
Men  kneel  before  thy  shrine  and  pray 

For  worthiness,  for  purity, 
For  absolution  and  for  thee  ; 

Goddess  adored,  vision  supreme, 
The  world  grows  dark  and  cold 

While  they,  in  all  unworthy 
Save  in  love, 

Trembling  and  faint,  cowards  to  hear, 
From  ice  to  fire 

Leap  at  thy  soft  spoke  word. 


[ 


We  see  it  in  the  radiant  face 

Of  budding  manhood 
Looking  out  along  life's  pathway  but  begun; 

His  manly  vigor  shines  and  glows 
With  every  muscle  well  in  tune, 

And  all  the  complicated  scheme 
Of  marvelous  structure 

Beats  and  bends 
In  unison  complete  and  weird 

To  the  controlling  mind  ; 
And  every  mountain  looks  a  hill, 

And  widest  rivers,  tiny  brooks, 
And  densest  forests,  pleasant  glades, 

And  fiercest  beasts  and  birds  seem  tame  ; 
And  all  the  yawning  gulfs  are  bridged, 

And  every  man  stands  forth  to  lend 
A  helping  hand  along  the  way, 

Along  the  way  where  flowers  grow. 
No  wonder 

All  the  gods  are  young, 
No  wonder 

God  is  made  a  man, 
The  perfect  man  has  lived,  — 

Was  God! 


[20] 

We  see  it  in  strong  purposed  men, 

The  product  of  the  life  matured, 
Through  face  revealed 

Where  conquering  strength 
Has  set  the  print  of  victory ; 

All  fallen  foes  forgiven  are, 
The  summit  stands  in  clear  outline, 

Strong,  well  poised,  sure, 
Trained  and  controlled, 

Revered,  respected,  resolute 
To  listen,  answer,  and  to  act; 

The  crisis  rises,  lesser  men 
Stand  trembling,  pale,  inadequate, 

Dreading  the  future's  unknown  fate, 
Powerless  to  think,  to  speak,  to  do; 

Then  stands  he  forth 
And  hope  is  bred, 

And  craven  fear  retreats,  abashed, 
And  sullen  envy  reason  learns, 

And  discontent  to  reason  turns, 
In  wise  and  generous  leadership 

An  honorable  peace  is  born; 
While  by  his  side, 

Hand  strong  in  hand, 
A  woman  wise    sustains,  upholds, 

A  woman  counsels,  cares,  consoles. 


Ah,  Love, 

Upon  the  altar  of  thy  happiness 
This  day,  dear  heart, 

Once  more 
I  consecrate  my  love  for  thee ; 

For  all  the  treasure  of  thy  constant  love, 
Which  year  by  year,  unstintingly, 

Thou  givest  me  so  far  beyond  my  due, 
I  only  bring  the  tribute  of  my  love; 

Wherein  this  gladdens  thee, 
Wherein  it  adds  in  any  way 

To  thy  dear  life,  which,  day  by  day, 
I  watch  unfold,  expand,  and  open  to  my  view 

The  fruits  of  all  thy  well  spent  years, 
The  fruits  of  thy  maturing  mind, 

Thy  goodness,  wisdom,  charity, 
Unselfishness  and  self  restraint, 

Thy  sweetness  and  thy  modesty, 
Therein,  dear,  am  I  glad; 

And  always  when  I  fail,  dear  heart, 
To  be 

That  which  thy  love 
Has  made  it  possible 

For  me  to  be, 
Then  in  thy  charity, 

Once  more  forgive, 
And  of  thy  treasure 

Give  me  yet  again. 


Old  Age    The  shadows  lengthen,  day  declines, 

From  out  the  hush 
A  wondrous  stillness  reigns, 

From  out  the  dusk 
A  wondrous  peace  prevails; 

An  influence  benign 
O'er  hill  and  vale  serenely  rests ; 

Breathless,  suspended, 
Evening-tide,  calm  and  content, 

Awaits  the  enfolding  night; 
The  boisterous  winds 

Have  sped  to  brighter  suns 
Their  flying  steeds; 

The  mounting  clouds,  in  dark  dismay, 
In  heaven's  far  confines  huddled, 

Hide  their  disastrous  breath; 
The  chariots  of  the  sun 

Beyond  earth's  borders  flee, 
Summoning  new  lands  to  life 

And  warmth  and  stern  activity. 
Enthroned  in  age, — 

Before  the  darkness  falls, — 
O,  Spirit, 

Hear  our  prayer  on  bended  knee; 
Thy  crown  of  peace  be  ours, 

Wrought  from  the  gold  of  pure  desires, 
Studded  with  gems  of  good  accomplishment, 

Untarnished  by  the  breath  of  all  unworthiness, 
Strong  in  the  interwoven  strands 

Of  charity  for  all, 
Peace  and  good  will  to  men. 


Death    From  earth  to  leaf, 

To  earth  and  ash ; 
The  sword  suspended  falls, 

The  golden  thread  gives  way, 
The  tiny  flame  burns  dim  and  fails ; 

The  final  dreaded  mystery 
Stands  out  before  the  expectant  soul ; 

O,  Spirit, 
Childlike  make  our  final  sleep  ; 

The  key  is  thine, — 
Against  the  greater  knowledge 

Rises  the  portal  vast, — 
Rare  spirits  forge  the  key, 

The  key  is  love ; 
Strong  in  the  strength  of  it, 

Borne  on  the  wings  of  it, 
Step  the  undaunted 

Forth 
Into  the  dark. 


IV 
MIND 

Out  of  the  whirl  of  worlds, 

Out  of  the  hand  of  time, 
Order  evolved; 

Out  of  the  birth  of  man, 
Out  of  the  rise  of  man, 

Law  of  his  life; 
Out  of  the  grain  of  sense 

Man's  highest  recompense 
Reasoning  mind ; 

God,  Thou  hast  ordered  it, 
Thine  is  the  law  of  it, 

Beauty  the  awe  of  it 
Thine  be  the  praise. 


Limitless,  eternal, 

Space  bounded  by  space, 
Age  piling  on  age,  endlessly, 

Vastness  inconceivable,  infinite: 
Hot  whirling  nebulae, 

Mother  of  suns, 
Parent  of  planets, 

Set  in  fixed  courses, 
Turned  to  the  harmony 

Of  plans  eternal: 
Birth  of  great  teeming  lands, 

Molten  and  barren : 
Birth  of  wide  waters, 

Seething  and  vaporous: 
Age  of  the  giant  plants, 

Age  of  the  monster  life  ;— 
Step  rising  on  step 

Higher  yet  higher; 
Man  last  in  all  the  scale, 

Pausing  an  age, — 
God's  moment, — 

Waiting  a  destiny 
Felt  in  rare  hours, 

Low  whispered  prescience 
Of  loftier  life. 


The  winter  passes,  magic  powers 

In  silence  stir  all  slumbering  life, 
The  potent  bud  unfolds  and  flowers 

To  leaf  and  fruit,  and  branch  and  stem; 
And  bird  calls  bird,  and  bee  seeks  blossom, 

And  every  timid,  wild  born  thing, 
By  appetite  and  instinct  led, 

Pursues  the  way  of  fate  ordained. 


Amidst  these  moving  marvels 

Man 
Alone  perceives  and  understands, 

Alone  in  his  high  heritage 
The  privilege  of  Mind. 

Born  to  an  unstable  grasp 
Of  a  short  allotted  day, 

Cast  out  on  existence's  sea, 
Saved  by  that  one  attribute, — 

Power  from  a  source  supreme,— 
Man  divinely  justified 

For  his  right  to  be. 
Secrets  of  life's  hidden  wonders 

Slowly  to  his  mind  unfold, 
Glimpses  of  the  mighty  power 

Which  shall  lead  the  race  to  truth ; 
Spirit  of  the  law  of  beauty 

Thine  the  star  to  light  the  way, 
In  thy  fair  and  perfect  image 

Man  shall  test  his  right  to  live. 


Into  his  hands  committed  earth's  millions, 

Generation  following  generation 
Time  without  end; 

Out  of  his  hands  flowing 
World  weal  for  woe ; 

Reason  succeeding  instinct, 
Order  quelling  riot; 

Out  of  the  seething  mass 
Of  men  savage,  men  lustful,  men  brutal, 

Out  of  their  envy,  out  of  their  hate, 
His  to  evolve  order  and  tolerance, 

Justice  and  temperance,  liberty  and  peace, 
Laws  for  the  common  good; 

His  to  evolve  charity  and  patience, 
Benevolence  and  mercy, 

Virtue  and  the  sacrifice  of  self; 
Wise  government  of  united  peoples, 

Honesty  and  chastity, 
The  joy  of  work,  the  joy  of  play. 


[  30] 

Nature  the  prodigal, — 

Millions  unfruitful, — 
One  seed  to  beauty  flowers, 

One  man  in  wisdom  blooms; 
Rose  begot  of  seed  excelling, 

Violet  joyous  for  a  day, 
Bloom  unconscious  for  the  ages, 

Waft  their  perfume  for  alway; 
Captains  and  their  hosts  in  armor 

Shining  with  the  light  of  faith, 
Brave,  unselfish  lives  they  offer, 

Dying  that  the  right  may  live; 
Toilers  at  the  stubborn  fortress, — 

Baffling  heights  where  science  hides,- 
Silent  battles  fought  in  secret, 

Victory  won  by  single  hand ; 
Giant  boulders  burst  asunder, 

Pure  the  crystal  lies  revealed, 
One  more  costly  jewel  added 

To  the  diadem  of  truth. 


Deeper  delving,  higher  climbing, 

More  revealed  and  clearer  sight, 
Man  with  added  knowledge  marching 

Towards  the  goal  which  fades  from  view 
In  the  mists  which  veil  life's  secrets, 

In  the  sunset's  gorgeous  hues, 
Where  the  pathway  leads  in  splendor 

To  the  citadel  of  light, 
Whence  man's  heavenly  given  power 

Shall  so  wisely  rule  mankind, 
Peace  of  heaven  on  earth  descended 

Through  the  miracle  of  Mind. 


V 
ART 

Light  of  the  summer  sun, 

Breath  of  the  wandering  breeze, 
Rain  of  the  vaporous  sky, 

Earth's  beauties  multiply 
In  nature's  perfect  plan. 

Born  of  the  ardent  mind, 
Imagination, —  fruitful  child, — 

Striving  for  utterance, 
Raises  the  works  of  man 

Into  the  lofty  realm  where  beauty  dwells, 
Into  the  kingdom  where 

Art  sits  enthroned. 
Virgin,  high  and  fair  and  pure, 

At  thy  feet  thy  votaries 
Sit  in  all  humility, 

Listening  for  thy  sacred  word, 
Listening  for  thy  sacred  note, 

Watching  for  thy  sacred  fire. 
Thine  the  magic  wand  to  change 

High  built  dome  to  shrine  of  God ; 
Thine  the  vital  soaring  flame 

Which  instills  cold  sculptured  clay 
With  the  living,  breathing  fire; 

Thine  the  tender  touch  which  guides 
Stroke  and  brush  of  master  hand; 

Thine  the  magic  tongue  which  speaks 
In  enduring  words  of  men; 

Thine  the  holy  beat  which  throbs 
In  the  highest  note  of  song. 


[34] 


Architecture 
The  Temple 
of  Juno 
at  Girgenti 


Faced  to  the  light 

Of  the  declining  day, 
Glowing  with  rosy  tints, — 

Those  first  fair  promises  of  sleep, — 
Set  on  commanding  heights 

And  born  to  proud  command, 
Through  twice  twelve  hundred  years 

The  pillared  temple  stands. 
Out  of  the  East  the  builders  came 

And  on  the  shining  shore 
Of  the  wide  inland  sea 

They  pitched  their  camps, 
Then  builded  to  the  gods 

As  they  were  wont  to  do  on  Attic  shores 
Where  beauty  held  its  sway. 

Mighty  the  task 
By  mighty  minds  inspired, 

And  great  was  their  content, 
For  in  their  hearts  they  knew 

That  what  they  did  was  good 
And  pleasing  to  great  Jove, 

To  whom  they  made 
The  living  sacrifice  of  beeves 

And  full  libations  poured  of  ruddy  wine. 


[35] 

On  nestling  slopes  and  pleasant  plain 

The  teeming  city  life 
Was  born  and  grew, 

And  waxed  and  waned  in  power, 
And  throbbed 

With  love,  and  hate,  and  wealth,  and  pride. 
Then  from  the  North 

And  from  the  South 
Came  warring  hordes 

And  stilled  the  urban  heart; 
And  in  their  lust 

They  smote  and  killed, 
And  left  nor  town  nor  man. 

But  through  the  softening  years 
The  kindly  hand  of  nature 

Laid  a  pall  of  flowers  wild, 
And  grasses  of  the  field 

Upon  the  land, 
And  to  the  fertile  soil 

The  nestling  slopes  and  plain 
Once  more  returned. 


[36] 

Against  the  temple  high, — 

In  impotence  and  fear, — 
The  leveling  blow  was  stayed  ; 

Nor  heavy  hand  of  time, 
Nor  wanton  war,  nor  covetous  man, 

Nor  surging  winter  blast, 
Have  ruin  wrought  complete; 

In  majesty  and  grace  to  the  admiring  day 
The  roofless  columns  rise, 

In  mystic  splendor  to  the  moon, 
The  phantom  of  the  past 

Raises  its  broken  shafts, 
While  the  confiding  wind 

Whispers  the  tale  through  centuries  told, 
And  every  listening  ear  hears, 

And  all  men  understand; 
While  far  below, 

Beneath  the  selfsame  stars, 
The  silver  sea  the  triremes  rode 

Sounds  on  the  selfsame  shore. 


[37  ] 

Sculpture     Through  untold  years  a  slave 
Michael  By  thought  set  free; 

Angela  s  J  °, 

Greek         To  stand  again  a  slave, — 
slave  The  dead  stone  vibrant,  throbbing, 

Impotent  against  the  encircling  bands; 

What  man  art  thoul 
An  image  merely,  made  of  stone! 

A  faithful  counterfeit  of  living  flesh! 
Enduring  copy  of  a  transient  life, 

Limb  like  to  limb, 
And  every  feature 

But  the  duplicate  of  an  external  man, 
So  deftly  done 

The  one  who  sees 
Is  lost  in  wonder 

At  the  external  likeness! 
Or,  in  thee  shall  we  see, — 

Closing  the  visual  eye 
And  letting  fancy  free 

To  revel  in  the  halls  of  our  imaginings,— 
The  soul  of  man 

In  eagerness  and  all  in  vain 
In  combat  to  be  free; 

Unending  strife  to  'scape  the  encumbering  clay, 
The  secret  learn, 

And  in  the  perfect  peace  of  perfect  knowledge 
Strong  and  assured 

To  rest  content. 


[38] 

Or  spirit  of  the  good 
Entangled  in  the  mesh  of  all  the  evil  nets 

Set  for  unwary  man; — 
The  strife  perpetual 

Which  is  the  cost  of  righteous  living; 
Or  what  thy  hidden  tale! 

A  mean,  bound  slave  art  thou! 
Then  whence  thy  subtle  power 

To  set  men  free, 
To  loose  them  from  themselves, 

To  summon  from  their  minds 
Their  unused  consciousness  of  higher  things, 

To  light  appreciation's  lamp 
Upon  the  altar  of  dulled  senses, 

So  that  joy  to  beauty  wed 
Steeps  men  in  self-forgetfulness, 

Enthralls  and  glorifies  their  lives 
For  one  brief  hour 

In  beauty's  realm  in  thee  create  I 


[39] 

The  master  set  thee  free ; 
Thy  moulded  form, 

Conceived  in  genius'  brain, 
Sprang  from  the  rough  hewn  block 

'Neath  his  unerring  hand 
Into  thy  quivering  shape; 

He  breathed  the  potent  spell  upon  thy  brow, 
And  his  the  subtle  power  which  dwells  in  thee, 

Which  lets  thee  laugh  at  death 
From  thy  high  vantage  ground 

Of  art  immortal ; 
And  in  thy  presence  makes  men  stand 

In  reverence  and  awe, 
As  stood  the  Greeks 

In  Attic  days 
Before  the  marble  forms 

Of  living  gods. 


[40] 

Through  sunlit  woods  where  dryads  dwell. 

Beneath  the  blossoming  trees 
Where  gentle  birds  to  gentle  mates 

In  tender  song 
Their  loving  hearts  pour  forth; 

Where  Pan  unto  the  woods 
Enchanted  music  makes, 

Until  all  living  things  and  earth  and  air 
With  happy  chorus  ring; 

Where  naiads  live  in  sparkling,  laughing  streams; 
Where  placid  pools  reflect  the  summer  clouds, 

The  flight  of  silent  wings, 
And  quivering  leaves  and  swaying  boughs; 

Where  graceful  ferns 
'Neath  tall  stemmed  lilies  droop, 

And  daffodil  and  violet,  like  bright  hued  gems, 
Earth's  vivid  green 

Of  crowded  moss  and  new  grown  grass 
Are  patterned  o'er; 

Where  all  the  hosts  of  fairy  folk 
Play  in  the  glistening  dew; 

And  where,  —  at  intervals,  —  there  reigns 
A  stillness  so  intense, 

The  sympathetic  ear  is  filled 
With  that  vast  hymn  of  myriad  sounds 

Pervading  earth  and  air,— 
The  blasts  of  all  Earth's  heralds 

Blended  in  glorious  melody,— 
The  splendid  note  that  nature  strikes, 

Proclaiming  — 
Spring  is  cornel 


See  where  she  stands! 

Nor  stands,  but  forward  bends,  so  quietly 
The  eye  of  man  no  movement  notes; 

With  flowers  bedecked ;  —  from  bounteous  store 
She  strews  the  earth, — 

A  maiden  fair,  smiling  and  tender; 
Forces  irresistible,  in  gentleness  concealed, 

Earth's  fruitfulness  portend; 
Her  sisters  gone  before,  she  heeds  them  not,— 

The  breath  of  icy  March, 
Nor  April  of  uncertain  mien, — 

'Tis  lovely  May,  a  smile  upon  her  lips, 
And  all  the  wealth  of  summer  in  her  eyes ; 

Potent  and  powerful,  gladly  expectant, 
Her  destiny  unfulfilled, 

The  maiden  mother,  calm  and  serene, 
The  parent  of  the  yielding  year. 


[4*  ] 

Attend  upon  her  now,  ye  summer  days, 
She  gave  thee  birth,  and  light,  and  life; 

Ye  sisters  three,  in  circling  rythm 
Tread  out  the  langorous  days 

Of  summer  suns  and  vaporous  skies; 
'Neath  starlit  nights  pursue  your  way 

Through  dewy  grass  and  ripening  fields, — 
The  winged  messenger  of  love  attends  your  steps, 

And  guards  the  birth,  and  light,  and  life  of  untold 

years; 
Attend  upon  her  now,  ye  autumn  days,— 

The  end  attained,  the  maid  matured, — 
Pluck  from  the  laden  boughs  the  ripened  fruit, 

And  each  shall  be 
The  promise  of  another  spring, — 

The  lovely,  blushing  bride 
Of  all  the  year. 


[43] 

Thus  man, 

His  aspiration  soaring  in  the  heights  of  thought, 
To  find  expression  other  than  in  words, 

In  deep  sincerity  has  wrought; 
Has  builded  monuments  of  use, 

Added  thereto  all  things  of  loveliness, 
Cut  from  reluctant  stone  fair  sculptured  forms 

Instinct  with  life  and  power, — 
Products  of  minds  trained  in  the  school 

Where  beauty  is  the  theme  of  all  endeavor; 
With  brush  and  pigment  reproduced 

For  man's  delight 
The  passing  scenes  of  life, 

The  face  of  those  beloved, 
And  those  ideal  themes 

Born  and  alive  in  brains  imaginative, 
To  stimulate  the  one  who  sees, 

To  answer  in  responsive  mood 
The  problems  genius  offers  to  his  mind. 


[44] 

While  in  man's  speech,  and  in  his  written  word, 

There  dwells  such  marvelous  power, 
Such  strength  to  sway  whole  empires, 

To  stir  men's  souls, 
To  bend  them  to  the  right, 

To  make  them  smile  and  weep, 
And  hate,  and  love,  and  pray, 

That  all  the  assembled  hosts 
Of  glittering  arms  the  world  has  ever  seen, 

In  influence  and  potency, 
To  pygmies  shrink 

Before  Christ's  single  word. 


[45  ] 

Play  on,  ye  tuneful  pipes, 

Add  your  deep  harmony 
To  the  inspired  melody 

Which  music  lends 
To  beautify  our  lives. 

There  comes  a  time  when  mere  words  fail; 
Emotions,  like  the  flush  of  morn, 

Elusive,  swift,  intangible, 
The  love  light  in  the  lover's  eyes, 

The  heart  with  speechless  sorrow  rent, 
The  formless  prayer  where  aid  is  none, 

Thy  province  are. 
Play  on,  ye  pipes  1 

Play  martial  airs,  play  hymns  of  praise! 
They  hear,  the  soldiers  of  the  Cross, 

Play  love,  and  joy,  and  peace 
To  all  mankind. 


VI 
IMMORTALITY 

In  all,  through  all,  which  way  we  turn, — 

Part  seen  and  understood,  and  part  not  f  athomed,- 
In  us  the  fault  may  lie ; — 

Great  stretches  far  beyond  our  ken, 
Where,  groping  darkly, 

Rises  a  cry  of  joy  in  minds  surrendered, 
Rises  a  cry  for  aid  in  minds  dumfounded; 

Ever  the  tongue  of  man 
Framing  a  word 

Born  of  his  heart's  desire, 
Stay  of  his  wavering  sense, — 

Love!     Christ!     God! 
Humbly  we  name  it, 

Deep  in  our  heart  of  hearts 
Humbly  receive  it. 


Whence  come  and  whither  bound 

Denied  us, 
.There  is  that  within  us  tells  the  story;— 

Far  above  the  human  life 
A  glory 

Filled  with  wisdom  infinite 
Frames  a  plan  majestic, 

Sets  the  stars  in  Heaven, 
Keeps  them  in  their  courses, 

Wills  the  human  sacrifice, — 
Earth's  poor  contribution  to  the  building 

Of  the  consummation  forged  on  high. 
Seek  ye  the  proofs? 

Look  to  the  beauty  of  the  summer  night, 
See  but  the  beauty  of  all  living  things, 

Search  in  the  beauty  nature  spreads, 
Lavish  handed,  over  land  and  sea, 

Contemplate  the  beauty  of  the  mind, 
The  lives  of  those  who  follow  Christ  among  mankind. 


[49] 

Past  usefulness, 
Silently  they  fade  away, — 

The  violet's  petals,  human  heart  beats, 
The  great  white  moon,  —  the  phantom  of  a  world, 

But  in  the  ash  of  every  sacrifice 
There  hidden  lies 

A  grain  of  gold 
Purified  for  the  end  inscrutable. 


[  50] 

Great  heart  beat  of  the  eternal  power, 
What  tiny  drop  of  our  poor  blood 

Can  mingle  in  the  mighty  flow 
Of  life  immortal! 

Perchance  an  answer  came 
That  Beauty  is  the  name 

Which  holds  the  test; 
If  to  the  sum  of  things 

The  human  being  brings 
Aught  that  can  stand  the  rays 

Of  that  keen,  searching  light, 
Aught  that  retains  a  purity  entire, 

Such  surely  cannot  die, 
But  to  the  heart  eternal 

Must  rendered  be. 
That  all  unworthiness,  that  all  unloveliness, 

Through  charity  divine 
Dissolves  in  dreamless  death, 

Should  that  cause  fear! 
More  dread  in  this, — 

That  all  man's  ugliness, 
In  that  immortal  beauty 

Which  is  God 
Should  mirrored  be. 


Ah,  Love,  give  unto  me  thy  hand, 

Turn  towards  me  thy  strong  gaze, 
That  I  may  read  within  those  eyes 

The  truth  that  therein  lies, — 
I  cannot  doubt, 

No  beauty  dies! 
Thy  hand  in  mine, 

Dear  friend; 
Courage! 

The  failures  were  of  yesterday, 
Again  the  sun 

Shall  rise. 


PS 

3537 

S766n 

1905 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


A    001  247190 


